


Stay with me

by missmolly



Category: Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-21
Updated: 2014-02-21
Packaged: 2018-01-13 06:48:38
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1216630
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/missmolly/pseuds/missmolly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Katniss Everdeen spent most of her life afraid she would lose those she loved most and here she was about to lose the one thing she never knew she wanted but was the one thing she couldn’t live without, her child.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The storm

Katniss Everdeen sat up in her bed with a start, too quickly as she became dizzy and slumped back against the pillows. She stretched out her arms against the blankets searching for it, him, Peeta. But she found nothing, an empty bed her only comfort 2 heavy blankets cocooned around her meant to chase off the chill of the stormy night. As she realized he wasn’t there, her heart started to race, thumping against her chest, where was he she thought? ‘Peeta’ she yelled, over and over with a growing intensity, the deafening silence confirming her thoughts, he was not in the house. At this moment the blankets around her began to feel like restraints, holding her still. She trashed her arms and legs to get herself free from the bedding, gasping for air as she began to struggle to breath. She tried to sit up again but a stabbing pain inside her stopped her, well that and the enormously swollen stomach. Katniss Everdeen spent so much of her life hungry and emancipated, and despite being 7 months into her pregnancy she still could not get used to the sight of her figure. Peeta told her daily that she had never looked more beautiful than she did carrying their child, but to Katniss the sight was a constant reminder of everything fear she could comprehend.  

 

            The nightmares had never been worse than during this pregnancy, but instead of the usual never ending parade of characters, those she was responsible for killing (inadventintyly or not) her dreams had but one person. Their child, a blonde boy scared and alone, walking to the podium at the reaping, being murdered in the games, gasping for air screaming their name as he lay dying. They did not know for sure it was a boy, but in her dreams there he was consuming her every thought. Katniss had never wanted children, and despite the fall of the capitol this hadn’t changed. She knew too much, had seen too much, she wanted, no needed the pain she had to die with her.  This pregnancy was an accident, yet the moment she felt her child inside her she understood a kind of love she didn’t think was possible.

 

 Katniss had loved a few in her life her parents who she loved as all children do. Her sister, her darling sister who she loved so much that loosing her had left a wound that no time could possibly begin to heal. Gale her best friend, she knew at some stage she loved him, but to this day did not know how, not that it mattered he was not part of her life now and she was okay with that. Cinna, the kind hearted man she had so little time with. Haymitch the man she tried to hate on many occasions, but instead had become family to her, she loved him like a father, a drunk, insensitive yet unwaveringly supportive father. And lastly Peeta, her Peeta the one she never intended to love, she tried so hard not to love him, but it was inevitable. She loved him with everything she was. Yet when she felt her child inside her she felt a love so deep, so primal it felt as old as life itself. From that moment on every fiber of her being was intent on protecting him and that scared her.

 

As Katniss searched her bed for Peeta, who she knew wasn’t there her hands found a small piece of paper placed where his head should be. At that moment a huge crack of lighting blazed across the sky outside her window. The weather had been bad in 12 and tonight a huge storm was playing. She wondered why the noise hadn’t woken her sooner, but agreed that the sound of a ferocious storm would have fit right in with the nightmares she was having.  By the light of the storm Katniss is able to read the note clearly

_gone to the bakery a big storm is coming and I needed to check everything was secure. Do not worry I will be back before you know it._

_Do not leave this bed. Love you._

How long had he been gone, why wasn’t he back? What if he was caught in the storm?. To many questions filled her head, her mind going to the worst case scenario as It always did. Could you blame her? Unfortunately history had shown they occur too frequently. A panic was beginning to rise in Katniss making her heart beat even faster than before, then without warning a blast of white hot pain hit her, letting out a bone chilling scream she grabbed at her stomach. As it began to fade her vision returned and she was able to see the truth about what was happening, between her legs was a pool of blood staining the delicate bed sheets. It was happening right here right now alone in her bed the worst-case scenario, she was loosing her baby. 


	2. Too fast

Immediately Katniss pulled herself off the bed and attempted to stand, the pain she was having was excruciating but the instinct that helped her survive 2 hunger games had kicked in. She wasn’t letting this baby go without a fight. Why now she thought? Just one more week and her mother would have been here. Her mother had helped many women give birth, but it was too early she would never have expected this to be happening now. She stumbled to the desk that sat at the side of their bedroom reaching it just as she crumpled to the floor. Pulling at the cord to the phone it toppled to the ground and she made the call to the only one who she needed. After two short rings his breathless voice came down the phone. ‘hello, hello? Is that you Katniss love?’ she attempted to speak but at this point bile had started to fill her mouth, and all she could muster was a whisper of his name. “oh darling’ he started ‘I’m sorry you woke and I wasn’t there, I had to come down to the bakery the storm was about to hit, and with all the electricity down here I didn’t want to start a fire so…’ he continued to speak but Katniss heard nothing, she usually longed for his words but at this moment none of them mattered. ‘PEETA’ she screamed down the phone, there it was that instinct again ‘Peeta’ she cried ‘I’m loosing him, the baby I’m loosing him’, ‘Katniss’ came down the receiver and then silence, they had been disconnected.

 

She huddled on the floor in the fetal position rocking and screaming as she rode out the waves of agonizing pain, that were becoming more and more frequent.  She felt herself start to get dizzy again, her body trying to pull herself into sleep but she willed herself to stay awake, knowing Peeta was on his way the only thing keeping he sane and present. As she clawed at the hard floor, needing something to grab a hold of she began to cry ‘baby, baby’ a whisper was all she could muster ‘stay with me baby, stay with me. Please’  She couldn’t tell how long she had been there for, time seemed to stand still and it felt like hours had past. As she let out another earth shattering cry she felt hands on her back, strong hands she knew so well. ‘Baby, baby, Katniss, please’ he was crying his voice dripping with desperation and horror. He scooped her up and walked her over to the bed as he placed her back down. ‘ Katniss talk to me what happened’ his hands moved frantically over her body, not that he had any idea what to look for. ‘He is coming, the baby he is coming, I need to get him out. I can feel it I’m loosing him I need to get him out’ she says between ragged breaths and screams.

 

At this moment another body came crashing through the doorway, the one person Katniss had not expected to see. Haymitch stood at the door panting with a look of stock written across his weathered face. The 16 year old girl inside Katniss felt embarrassed that he was seeing her in this position, the same girl who couldn’t bear to look at a naked Peeta in the area. However that feeling was washed away by another blinding pain. ‘I have too push’ she yelled, at no one in particular. At this moment she was so thankful that Haymitch was dead sober, the bad weather had meant shipments from the capitol had not arrived. And while this meant he had clearly not slept in days she was surprisingly thankful he was here. The two men locked eyes at each other and with a fierce determination they silently agreed that this was happening and they were going to do this. ‘Sweetheart…’ where the only words that escaped Haymitch’s mouth as he rushed too the bed. ‘Love’ Peeta said stroking Katniss’s forehead ‘  you need to tell me what to do. I don’t know anything about this, he is too early! He shouldn’t be here for weeks, you said you’ve seen your mother help deliver babies before, tell us what to do’. ‘Look and tell me If he is coming’ with these instructions he moved to the end of the bed to inspect what was going on. The sight was overwhelming, but unmistakable, their child was coming and fast. He raised his head and began to yell instructions at the other man in the room, but was stopped in his tracks.  

 

Haymitch was sitting behind Katniss propping her up, one hand tenderly stroking her hair the other holding he hand tightly, after the war there was no doubt that he was their family, but this sight was almost too overwhelming for Peeta. “Peeta’ she screamed ‘whats going on’. ‘he is coming baby, I can see him Katniss, push’ and with that instruction Katniss pushed,  she was praying to a god she knew didn’t exist that he baby was still alive. Suddenly Katniss was unable to concentrate on anything and asthe room began to spin and she was unable to hear anything, not the instructions Peeta was giving her, or the calming words Haymitch was whispering in her ear.  With one more wave of pain, it all slipped away and faded to black, silence.

 

‘Katniss, Katniss’ as she began to come back to reality she felt hands on her face. Despite everything she was unable to open her eyes. She just knew it, she lost him, her baby was gone. And then she heard it, the single greatest sound her ears would ever hear, a tiny cry. Her eyes flew open in an instant, nothing could have prepared her for what she way in front of her. Peeta, tears flowing endlessly down his face, sitting beside her cradling a little bundle, little hands protruding from the makeshift swaddle, a baby their baby. ‘Katniss’ he chokes out in between cries, ‘Baby, love it’s a girl.. our baby she is here, she is safe. Oh she is a fighter just like her mother, she’s perfect’ he reaches across planning a wet kiss on her forehead ‘I love you so much’. It was all too much for Katniss; luckily haymitch was still there holding her up because it was too much to comprehend. How was it possible, nothing in her life went right, and yet here she was their child safe, alive, here. ‘ I’m so proud of you sweetheart’ Haymitch said kissing her forehead. And with that he stood running his hands through his greasy hair and began to leave the room, while Peeta began to protest, he reminded them that someone needed to call the Dr to tell them what had happened.

 

And with that he left the room, leaving just the 3 of them to have their first moments as a family. Carefully Peeta places the little baby in Katniss arms and lays down beside he holding them both Peeta whispering loving words to them, his girls. For the first time Katniss is able to see her child, a tiny little thing with soft light hair, and dark eyes, with 10 little finger and 10 little toes. Perfect she thought. Katniss said nothing, she was never good with words, eventually she looked Peeta in the eyes and in a voice no louder than a whisper ‘We have her, real or not real?, she is here and ours’ she questions. ‘Real’ he replies, half crying half laughing out of pure unadulterated joy. Katniss had spent so many hours looking at his beautiful face, but in this moment she his big blue eyes reflected the joy she didn’t dare dream they could have.

 

The rest of the night is a blur, the Dr’s come and examine Katniss and the baby. And despite the trauma of the birth, both are relatively okay, they request they be taken to the local hospital but Katniss refuses. They help her breastfeed the baby and after what seem like an eternity leave, after giving Peeta a significant amount of information. It had been only a few hours since all this started, and yet so much had happened it was no surprise when Katniss began to see the sun rise outside their window. Peeta scoped Katniss up and carried her to the bathroom helping clean her up, by placing her gently on the toilet and attempted to clean away the blood with a damp cloth. A bath would be too much, it isn’t until Peeta helps Katniss dress into a fresh nightgown she realizes that their baby is nowhere in sight. She starts to panic ‘Peeta, where is she’ she screams. Just as he begins to calm her down Haymitch appears at the door holding their baby. ‘Hey sweatheart, how did something so beautiful come out of you?’ he questions with a crooked smile appearing on his face, In all the years she had known him she had never seen him so happy.

 

The two men help her back to the bed, lying her down beneath a set of fresh sheets. Peeta sinks in beside her placing their child gently in her arms as he slinks his arms around her to hold them both. ‘sleep now baby, you did so well. She is here.. she is ours.. she is safe. I love you, real this is so real’. And with that Katniss lets out an barely audible ‘I love you’ as sleep pulls her under. There were no nightmares that night, it was the most peaceful night sleep she could ever remember having.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading :) Still very new at this so any comment would be greatly appreciated. Peace and love x


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